What fresh hell is this? National VE day

[wetpants]

This has popped up on my local FB page, villagers are all up for it too. Apparently it’s a nationwide incentive??

The thing is, most front gardens are tiny or non existent here. There’s no way you could be 2m away from your next door. Also these villagers who are up for this are the same people who few weeks ago cried about a lone bloke sitting on a crass verge, well away from any pedestrians. How is this any different?

I’m not British (have lived here a long time though) so maybe I’m just not getting the fervent VE day misty eyeness

And don’t get me started on 9pm nationwide singalong WHO comes up with these things???

52 isn’t mid 50s

Figures are adjustable

I'm not sure I fancy sitting on my dirty drive eating scones!

@WorraLiberty OP is from Finland.

"Plus if you're looking at which individual country's actions was most responsible for the Allied win it was Russia, hands down."

I'd say it was the Russian winter what did it, rather than the Russians, per se!

Well we (Channel Islanders) were actually occupied by the Germans during WW2, and we do have a major celebration for Liberation Day every year (it's a Bank Holiday, huge amount of island activities normally, celebrating with those who are still alive who survived etc.) but even we aren't proposing anything like this!

We're just doing stuff online/streaming on local pages, and running lots of memorial things in the local paper. It's not what we planned, and it's not what we want, but it's what we've got (and we're doing much better than the mainland with Covid too, so it's not as if we couldn't bend being sensible).

But then, because we celebrate this day every year anyway, we'll just go bigger and better for (God willing) the 76th anniversary next year. Maybe it's because the UK mainland doesn't usually give a thought to when VE day is normally anyway that the people proposing this odd 'front garden street party' idea see it as a 'one shot deal' with public awareness, because next year no one will remember what the day is as usual?

All that's missing is blasting out 'God Save the Queen' at the top of our lungs or perhaps a little nostalgic sing along to 'We'll Meet Again'.

I'm really hoping my street (which has so far got stuck right into clapping and banging pots on a Thurs night ) won't notice and we'll be left in peace.

There is a long and measured debate to be had over the USSR, Russia and the sixteen other republics including the three occupied Baltic states taken under the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact.

The sacrifices of the people of these lands was immense. The role of their govt and Stalin in particular less worthy. As all those Polish officers would testify if they hadn't been shot in the head.

I’m not British (have lived here a long time though) so maybe I’m just not getting the fervent VE day misty eyeness. And don’t get me started on 9pm nationwide singalong shock WHO comes up with these things???
I won't be doing it because I don't have any neighbours and in Scotland we're not up for this sort of thing so much. But OP if these things cheer people up a bit then why not. These 'I'm not British' posts are always full of self aggrandisement.

zaff We'll Meet Again is scheduled for 9pm on the list , after Queenie's speech

It's all too spread out for me. Sure pop out at 2pm and get drunk with the neighbours, and eat lots of scones (cream first obviously) but not in and out every 2 hours or whatever!

Thank you DrinkVeneer. Nothing glorious about war in my book.

All that's missing is blasting out 'God Save the Queen' at the top of our lungs or perhaps a little nostalgic sing along to 'We'll Meet Again'.

If you are as old as me, you will remember the time when cinemas used to play the National Anthem at the end of the evening's showing. This became a cue for everyone to dive for the exits before it started, so they stopped playing it.

If feels like piggy backing on someone else's life. Yes, ok, Mark it. But in a country that voted brexit, it feels hypocritical to be celebrating a coming together or Europe. Not only that, but pretending we're part of VEday feels a bit insulting to.those who had actually endured the previous years.I worry we're in.danger of mythologising war as those involved die off. None of g parents ever even.talked about the war, despite living and serving during it. Although my gfather watched world at war religiously.

Totally agree Asuitablecat

But think of all the patriotic, jingoistic flags and bunting, MrsFrankDrebin

I don’t think that would go down well here.

They've never given a shit about VE Day before - I'm in my 50s so I've seen a few. The focus has always been on D Day commemoration.
I totally get the importance in the life of our nation but this one was co-opted as a cheap jingoistic bollocks for Brexit purposes - the deadline for requesting a transition is just after.
I will be washing my hair.
And just as a reminder to the Tories, Churchill was voted out shortly after and the NHS was created.

No one even claps around here any more I can't see them putting on their best frocks and eating scones in their front gardens.

I don't live in a nice leafy village though.

Was there any need to go digging and bringing my nationality into this? I didn’t want to share it as I am always worried of being recognised.

To me all this enforced clapping / VE Day celebrating / poppy wearing smacks a bit too much the totalitarian regimes of the last century that people have given their lives to overcome.
Also a bit patronising by the PP who claimed that some of us might need to google Bergen-Belsen!

Is it just me, or do we seem to be perpetually celebrating WWII dates and anniversaries? In the last 30 or so years I feel like I've done this a lot. Groundhog Day. We are a teeny bit over-invested in WWII, I feel.

So I thought I'd do something anyway , as I do like 1940's stuff in a sort of mindless, at-least-I-don't-actually-have-to-endure-nightly-bombing-and-rationing way. But now I see there's a fucking programme for the day, including a minute's silence (for what? is this a WWII 75th anniversary celebration-but-also-people-died silence or a covid19 silence or what?) Churchill FFS, and for good measure the Queen. I'd quite like to wear a nice teadress and eat Woolton Pie (not really) but I'd quite NOT like people to think I'm buying into this mass hysteria/rose-tinted view of the past/bread and circuses attempt to get us all to BEHAVE and stay at home. So that's probably a no from me.

Germany came out of the war eventually as a stronger nation by promoting industry and wealth. This established their health service and standard of living. We spent most of our Marshall plan money on health. The Germans spread their Marshall plan money around a bit more so all sectors flourished eventually.

Obviously not an in depth economic study but I’m slightly tired of these opportunities to get jingoistic and celebrate an achievement we needed a lot of help to see through. Our industry was poorly run after the war and didn’t improve quickly enough. Remember all those rusting awful cars we used to produce?

I do feel a group of nations defeated the Nazis in Europe and we should celebrate the breadth of this achievement but we seem to think we did it alone. We didn’t.

Well I may be worrying over nothing. I've been to look at my local branch of the curtain twitching coronastasi (aka covid-19 support group for the area) and there is no mention of VE day celebrations.

They seem more concerned about B&Q being open. It should be closed to all but the trade. I bet the majority of people are doing "improvement" projects rather than "repair" projects but it does beg the question of what they expect people to do if they need to fix something. However, I am derailing the thread.

Well we (Channel Islanders) were actually occupied by the Germans during WW2, and we do have a major celebration for Liberation Day every year Very different as you are commemorating being liberated.

I totally get the importance in the life of our nation but this one was co-opted as a cheap jingoistic bollocks for Brexit purposes - the deadline for requesting a transition is just after.
I will be washing my hair Ha ha Bellini! And in another thread derail thank you for all your advice on prepping which meant we were reasonably well stocked when this crisis blew up. I did see someone thanking you on another thread yesterday but couldn't find it again.

Do we not have silence on 11 November and then again at the Remembrance services? Too many silences devalues them.

it is NOT glorifying war
it is glorifying the END of war
is that so difficult to understand.
If you don't wish to join in keep out of it - you millenials or whatever you are are such bunch of killjoys.
Oh - and just a reminder - this is nothing to do with Brexit - Europe is NOT the EU - we are still part of Europe
OP YABU -